Jayla Cunningham — the Maryland hairstylist who appears on camera dragging her 15-year-old client over an alleged attempt to evade payment — now faces second-degree assault charges.
The viral footage, posted by the 18-year-old hairstylist herself, shows her dragging the teenager across the floor of her salon over a $150 service including an “up-down” hair installation.
In the video shared by Fox 5 DC, Cunningham is heard screaming, “I’m not f**king playing. You just tried to f**king run. You lucky I ain’t beat the sh*t out you.” The scene then escalates as Cunningham drags the young girl by her hood, tossing her to the ground and continuing to berate her while cutting the style out of her hair.
According to the young girl’s mother, who’s concealed her child’s name because she’s a minor, she accidentally sent the payment to the wrong Cash App account instead of the stylist’s.
“It’s absolutely absurd,” began the teenager’s mother. “It’s viral. It’s all over the country.” When asked how her daughter is dealing with the unwanted attention emotionally, she added, “Not good at all.”
Yet, Cunningham maintains that, without her forceful actions, she believes she would not have received the payment. “She ran without paying me,” Cunningham explained. “I dragged her by her hood back into the salon until I could get paid or until the police come or until she let me take out the service.”
Meanwhile, the family of the 15-year-old has hired legal representation, with attorney De’Aja Thompson condemning the act as “horrendous” and questioning the need for such violence over what was ultimately a mistake.
“It’s a 15-year-old girl. We’re talking about someone’s child here,” Thompson stated. “A child who is being dragged over something as simple as a mistake.”
Cunningham’s court date is set for April 18.
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